HMS ''Southwold'' was a Type II British built for the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. She served in the Mediterranean for a few months until she was sunk off Malta in March 1942.

History

''Southwold'' was ordered on 20 December 1939, and was built by J. Samuel White and Company of

East Cowes East Cowes is a town and civil parish in the north of the Isle of Wight, on the east bank of the River Medina, next to its west bank neighbour Cowes. The two towns are connected by the Cowes Floating Bridge, a chain ferry operated by the Isle ...

as part of the 1939 emergency program. Her keel was laid on 18 June 1940 with Job number J6274, and the ship was launched on 29 May of the following year. The vessel was completed on 9 October 1941. After she was completed, ''Southwold'' went to Scapa Flow for trials, after which she joined the Mediterranean Fleet. On 16 November 1941 ''Southwold'' joined convoy WS12Z at the ocean escort Clyde Assembly point. The ship detached from the convoy on 14 December and made an independent passage from

Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...

. On 5 January 1942 she joined the

5th Destroyer Flotilla The British 5th Destroyer Flotilla, or Fifth Destroyer Flotilla, was a naval formation of the Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the ...

for patrol and convoy escort duties. She deployed a supply of stores and embarked troops to

Tobruk Tobruk or Tobruck (; grc, Ἀντίπυργος, ''Antipyrgos''; la, Antipyrgus; it, Tobruch; ar, طبرق, Tubruq ''Ṭubruq''; also transliterated as ''Tobruch'' and ''Tubruk'') is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near ...

. On 12 February she was part of the

Malta Convoy The Malta convoys were Allied supply convoys of the Second World War. The convoys took place during the Siege of Malta in the Mediterranean Theatre. Malta was a base from which British sea and air forces could attack ships carrying supplies ...

MW9B but the convoy was under heavy air attack so it returned to Alexandria. Paddle tug bringing troops ashore at Malta A7331

On 20 March 1942, she carried out an anti-submarine sweep along planned path for Malta relief convoy MW10 along with some other destroyers. On 21 March, she joined this same convoy and took part in the

Second Battle of Sirte The Second Battle of Sirte (on 22 March 1942) was a naval engagement in the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Gulf of Sidra and southeast of Malta, during the Second World War. The escorting warships of a British convoy to Malta held off a much ...

a day later. On the 23rd she and left the convoy to escort HMS ''Breconshire'' to Malta. On 24 March, ''Southwold'' was attempting to pass a line to ''Breconshire'' when she activated a British mine and there was an explosion in which an officer and four ratings were killed . She sustained major structural damage and the engine room flooded while electrical supplies failed. She was towed by the tug ''Ancient'' but the hull split and she began to sink. The survivors were rescued by .

Wreck

The wreck of ''Southwold'' lies in two sections about of

Marsaskala Marsaskala ( mt, Wied il-Għajn), also written as Marsascala and abbreviated as M'Skala, is a seaside town in the South Eastern Region of Malta which has grown around the small harbour at the head of Marsaskala Bay, a long, narrow inlet also kno ...

Bay,

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

. The bow is the largest piece, about in length, and it lies on its starboard side at a depth of . The stern, which is located about away from the bow, is about long and it lies upright in of water.

References

Publications

* * English, John (1987). The Hunts: a history of the design, development and careers of the 86 destroyers of this class built for the Royal and Allied Navies during World War II. England: World Ship Society. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Southwold (L10) Hunt-class destroyers of the Royal Navy Ships built on the Isle of Wight 1941 ships World War II destroyers of the United Kingdom Shipwrecks of Malta World War II shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea Maritime incidents in March 1942 Ships sunk by mines Marsaskala